Preview — A Stitch in Time
by Beryl Kingston

A Stitch in Time

Rose’s life is about to be torn apart by war, but can she and her sisters piece together a new life in a rapidly changing world?

London, 1914: Rose Boniface and her orphaned siblings live a small but happy life in South-East London. But when war breaks out across Europe and her older brother enlists, nothing will ever be the same again.

As men leave for the war in droves, thRose’s life is about to be torn apart by war, but can she and her sisters piece together a new life in a rapidly changing world?

London, 1914: Rose Boniface and her orphaned siblings live a small but happy life in South-East London. But when war breaks out across Europe and her older brother enlists, nothing will ever be the same again.

As men leave for the war in droves, the girls must take on whatever work they can find to make ends meet. High-risk work in munitions factories and back-breaking domestic labour seem to be all that’s available to them, but Rose has other ideas…

A tale of love and heartbreak, triumph and resilience, this sweeping saga by best-selling author Beryl Kingston takes the reader inside the extraordinary lives of ordinary women in Wartime London.

A Stitch in Time was first published in 1995 as Alive and Kicking....more

Community Reviews

An extremely well written book! It's a little bit longer, but worth the extra time. Especially if you love a story and wish it didn't have to end, this is that kind of book. Characters who I loved, characters who were deliciously wicked! A very enjoyable book! Lots of characters, but they were very easy to follow and keep up with. Highly recommend to anyone who enjoys Historical Fiction in the WWI era, and afterward. I will be reading more from this author!I received an ARC of this book from NetAn extremely well written book! It's a little bit longer, but worth the extra time. Especially if you love a story and wish it didn't have to end, this is that kind of book. Characters who I loved, characters who were deliciously wicked! A very enjoyable book! Lots of characters, but they were very easy to follow and keep up with. Highly recommend to anyone who enjoys Historical Fiction in the WWI era, and afterward. I will be reading more from this author!I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley.Thank you so much, Netgalley!All opinions are my own....more

The premise of the story is interesting, and I think the author did a good job of recreating people's everyday life during the time period. Only the beginning of the novel is set during WW1 though, so don't expect a full WW1 story.Towards the middle, I started getting bogged down by the constant change of point of view of the numerous characters, but thankfully the pace picked up again after a while. I can often find my interest in characters waning when the point of view changes too often. ThatThe premise of the story is interesting, and I think the author did a good job of recreating people's everyday life during the time period. Only the beginning of the novel is set during WW1 though, so don't expect a full WW1 story.Towards the middle, I started getting bogged down by the constant change of point of view of the numerous characters, but thankfully the pace picked up again after a while. I can often find my interest in characters waning when the point of view changes too often. That being said, I appreciated having so many strong female characters.A lot of the story was quite predictable and the male characters do a lot of "booming". Nevertheless it is a pleasant, entertaining read.

Disclaimer - I received a free digital copy of this book from Agora Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review....more

My review for you today could be called old-but-new. That is, the book A Stitch in Time by Beryl Kingston (which is coming out November 22nd!) was originally published as Alive and Kicking. New title, new cover, same eloquent book! It's a solid four stars - let me tell you a little about it.

Rose Boniface and company (her friends and siblings) are alive and well but enter WWI and their entire lives are turned upside down. It's been hard enough living in London as orphans together but tragedy striMy review for you today could be called old-but-new. That is, the book A Stitch in Time by Beryl Kingston (which is coming out November 22nd!) was originally published as Alive and Kicking. New title, new cover, same eloquent book! It's a solid four stars - let me tell you a little about it.

Rose Boniface and company (her friends and siblings) are alive and well but enter WWI and their entire lives are turned upside down. It's been hard enough living in London as orphans together but tragedy strikes and they are forced to figure out how to make ends meet with a war on. Enter the Monks family. They've got it made - their fanciful way of speaking, demanding, and generally being untouched by war doesn't give them the best reputation with those in town. But times are hard, and Rose, among others, will end up crossing paths with the Monks in more ways than one. But Rose is determined to continue on, and it's a delight following the journey.

A Stitch in Time demonstrated strong character building. There were points where I was so sad for Rose and her family and other times where I would have loved to smack Augusta. The characters painted the picture of both the struggling and wealthy during WWI and thereafter. But the strongest and most important message of all was that you are in control of your destiny. Follow your gut, listen to that intuition and take risks. This is advice we should all be striving to follow and this story is surely to inspire that in you....more

This is a tough one to give a star rating to. On the one hand, it was a fast, flowing read and lots of fun, in a cozy, "things were tough back then but we're English, darn it, so we're jolly well going to soldier on" way. For the most part it really evoked the London of the lower classes during and after WWI. But much of it was predictable, and it lacked the emotional punch I felt it should have had, And would an East Ender have been able to comfortably move amongst the middle and upper-middle cThis is a tough one to give a star rating to. On the one hand, it was a fast, flowing read and lots of fun, in a cozy, "things were tough back then but we're English, darn it, so we're jolly well going to soldier on" way. For the most part it really evoked the London of the lower classes during and after WWI. But much of it was predictable, and it lacked the emotional punch I felt it should have had, And would an East Ender have been able to comfortably move amongst the middle and upper-middle classes without once giving thought to her elocution,, vocabulary, and grammar—or without anyone else judging it? So while I enjoyed it, I can't in good conscience rate it four stars. Consider it the literary equivalent of comfort food.

Thank you, NetGalley and Agora Books, for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review....more

Rose, her two sisters Nettie and Mabel, two brothers Bertie and Col all live in London, hand to mouth in two rented rooms at the advent of World War I. Life isn’t easy, but they all muddle on and just make ends meet: quietly taking one step at a time. Knowing that things are tight, Rose starts working at the ‘great house’ for Augusta Monk – a difficult if very rich woman: the money is welcome and her quiet nature (if much comes from biting her tongue) means she lasts longer than most, a necessitRose, her two sisters Nettie and Mabel, two brothers Bertie and Col all live in London, hand to mouth in two rented rooms at the advent of World War I. Life isn’t easy, but they all muddle on and just make ends meet: quietly taking one step at a time. Knowing that things are tight, Rose starts working at the ‘great house’ for Augusta Monk – a difficult if very rich woman: the money is welcome and her quiet nature (if much comes from biting her tongue) means she lasts longer than most, a necessity when her brother Bertie joins up and she and her younger brother Col are the only ones bringing in money. A keen eye and a talent for reworking old garments, Rose’s skill with a needle keeps her little family well-dressed, and her skill with a needle will bring her a way out of poverty. Eventually.

This was a sweetly drawn story full of the struggles of wartime Britain and the associated losses, highs and lows. Through it all, Rose and her little family now consists only of she and her sisters, and a friend welcomed in after her time as a ‘companion’ to the cousin of Rose’s employer. A small cottage-industry is started with dresses made more stylish but affordable to the women in her neighborhood, the story follows their lives through loves, deaths, losses and gains, as the little group slowly works their way through the war and after, making a mark on the world through Rose’s fashion and business sense.

While I appreciated the author’s characterizations and the emotional ties that bound the women together in their own little ‘band’ of sisters – the entire story has a rather rose-colored tint when it comes to the upward mobility of Rose. England was in fact going through a ton of changes, socially, but the sharp rise from poor and hardscrabble to ‘respected businesswoman’ for Rose was entirely fabricated and far too optimistic. Sure, in her own neighborhood she’s a rarity and thing of wonder, but outside that small and ‘samey sounding’ group – her “ain’ts’ long vowels and ‘finks’ are dead cert giveaways to her background – add female to that and there isn’t a way that she would have found such ‘acceptance’ from either the powers that be or the Manchester Mill owner. It just doesn’t work. But, if you can ignore that and forgive the overly simplistic ending with a seriously rose-colored bow, the story is engaging and smile-inducing, a bit of candyfloss for an afternoon.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

I received an advanced Kindle version of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Agora Books Publishing and NetGalley!

This book was a quick read and was the epitome of all good parts of a book that I enjoyed. Rose is the second eldest of her family and along with her eldest brother, Bertie, she makes up the Matriarchal side. Their mother and father had passed away and now that the WWI is upon them, Bertie decides to enlist in the army to obtain funds for his sistersI received an advanced Kindle version of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Agora Books Publishing and NetGalley!

This book was a quick read and was the epitome of all good parts of a book that I enjoyed. Rose is the second eldest of her family and along with her eldest brother, Bertie, she makes up the Matriarchal side. Their mother and father had passed away and now that the WWI is upon them, Bertie decides to enlist in the army to obtain funds for his sisters and brothers which leaves Rose as the sole head of house to take care of her two sisters and one brother. As the story progresses, Rose finds herself as a servant at the Monk house where she keeps a side hobby of mending and creating new clothes for her family and for Augusta Monk, her employer. She quickly gets caught up in the war as her brother continues his journey, rationing, and other horrors of the war take hold of her and her family.

This book was definitely unique from others in its genre, in that the author wasn't afraid to explain in descriptive terms the horrors that occur during wartime. She lays all of it bare to explain how awful it truly was across England and Europe during the time. I really enjoyed reading the book and was glad to have the opportunity. I look forward to looking for more titles by Beryl Kingston....more

On the wall of a simple home in southeast London hangs a sampler stitched by a dearly departed mother, advising her five orphaned children to "live with dignity." And that is what Rose Boniface and her siblings do. ...more

Beryl Kingston has written a delightful and clever novel about a young girl’s coming of age, and her four siblings in Great Britain during WW1.

You can’t help but fall in love with this charming industrious family, as the story follows them through their growing up years, and for some of them, into their adult lives...our heroine: patient, cheerful Rose; sensible, hardworking Bertie; passionate, loyal Netta; bold, fearless Col, and loving, innocent Mabel. Their love for each other perseveres durBeryl Kingston has written a delightful and clever novel about a young girl’s coming of age, and her four siblings in Great Britain during WW1.

You can’t help but fall in love with this charming industrious family, as the story follows them through their growing up years, and for some of them, into their adult lives...our heroine: patient, cheerful Rose; sensible, hardworking Bertie; passionate, loyal Netta; bold, fearless Col, and loving, innocent Mabel. Their love for each other perseveres during the hard times of the war, and afterwards.

Blurb~“Rose’s life is about to be torn apart by war, but can she and her sisters piece together a new life in a rapidly changing world?

London, 1914: Rose Boniface and her orphaned siblings live a small but happy life in South-East London. But when war breaks out across Europe and her older brother enlists, nothing will ever be the same again.

As men leave for the war in droves, the girls must take on whatever work they can find to make ends meet. High-risk workA Stitch in Time by Beryl Kingston

Blurb~“Rose’s life is about to be torn apart by war, but can she and her sisters piece together a new life in a rapidly changing world?

London, 1914: Rose Boniface and her orphaned siblings live a small but happy life in South-East London. But when war breaks out across Europe and her older brother enlists, nothing will ever be the same again.

As men leave for the war in droves, the girls must take on whatever work they can find to make ends meet. High-risk work in munitions factories and back-breaking domestic labour seem to be all that’s available to them, but Rose has other ideas…

A tale of love and heartbreak, triumph and resilience, this sweeping saga by best-selling author Beryl Kingston takes the reader inside the extraordinary lives of ordinary women in Wartime London.”

The author seems to write effortlessly. Her narrative is evocative, and so descriptive and vivid. It is as if the characters stood before your eyes. The pacing was perfect for the plotline, with each passage, in turn, relevant to the arc of the story. The characters were likeable and dynamic. You became emotionally invested in them and their tragedies and triumphs.This is a wonderfully written book about a remarkable family enduring through the hard cruelties of life during war. It shows the bonds of family, and illustrates how different members of a family unit can grow and come into their own. Their family ties strengthen during adversity.While reading, there were moments of heartbreak, and, at times, laughter while cheering on our heroine Rose. The story was a bit predictable, but still enjoyable. The story flowed so well, and that made it an easy and wonderful read. 5/5

This book was given to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This review, or portions thereof, will be posted (when able) on Amazon, Goodreads, Kobo, Bookbub, BAM, Litsy, IG, B&N, Pinterest, Facebook, Kobo, and my own blog. Unfortunately, I am unable to provide all links at this time, as I am using my phone....more